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Grandma, Mommy, and Me: Intergenerational Living

by Roslyn Duffy
July/August 2008
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Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/grandma-mommy-and-me-intergenerational-living/5018274/

�" Situation �"

An old song’s lyrics begin:

Over the river, and through the wood,
To Grandmother’s house we go . . .

Even if we update these words to:

Over the highway, and through the security gates,
To Grandmother’s house we race . . .

One question is relevant, “Why are we going?” The answers need updating, too.



�" Solution �"

The old answer was that the family was going to a grandparent’s home to celebrate Thanksgiving. Today there might be other reasons to gather under one roof �" and the roof won’t always be Grandma’s.

A few weeks ago, our daughter and two grandchildren moved in with us because their house was for sale. The house needed to look pristine while realtors held open houses or took potential buyers on tours. Living together was a joy, but we were honest enough to admit that there were �" shall we say, ‘some moments’?

Our experience got me thinking about generations living together �" something previously less common in America than in other cultures. In fact, I remember a Vietnamese friend once looking at the upper level of our garage and saying, “This is very nice. You will be able to have a place for you son and ...

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